Fantastic Chef (Remedios, Malate): Mouthwatering Samgyupsal in Manila
If you’re a samgyupsal lover, then you should know about Fantastic Chef. It’s one of the best samgyupsal restaurants in Manila. Hali and I previously dined in at their 2nd branch in Taft, and recently we were invited to visit Fantastic Chef’s main branch at Remedios, Malate, as well.
Here’s our review for Fantastic Chef in Remedios, Malate!
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Fantastic Chef (Remedios, Malate)
What makes Fantastic Chef unique? Well, their kitchen is headed by Chef Jang Jungyun, who is a Korean A-list chef and Michelin Awardee. As such, you’re guaranteed that their menu is high quality.
Fantastic Chef offers 2 options: P499 for unli pork and chicken and P549 for unli pork, beef and chicken.
Location and ambiance
Fantastic Chef is located along Remedios Circle, beside other restaurants. Inside, the first 2 rooms are a bit narrow, but they have a newly built section which is more comfortable and spacious. We requested for a table here.
Food
Fantastic Chef has an extensive menu: you can enjoy 11 meats and 9 side dishes.
For the side dishes, they have cabbage kimchi, lettuce kimchi, coleslaw salad, pickled radish, japchae, fish cake, steamed egg and tofu stew. Of course, there’s also fresh lettuce and rice (as requested).
I like the cabbage kimchi which is moderately spicy — it’s suitable for Filipino taste. I also like the japchae and steamed egg. The tofu stew is good — unlike the sundobu jjigae served in other restaurants, this one contains pieces of beef as well.
For the meat, they offer 11 different flavors:
- Skirt meat
- Rack
- Jowls meat
- Seasoned pork neck
- Pork belly
- Cheek
- Spicy pork bulgogi
- Seasoned chicken BBQ
- Spicy chicken BBQ
- Beef plate
- Seasoned beef plate
What I like about the meats at Fantastic Chef is that you know they are fresh — the meats have a pink color and the thin slices are served in a full roll, which suggests that they are freshly cut. Also, Fantastic Chef has one of the best-flavored meats I’ve tried. Over the past months, I’d been to quite a few unli samgyupsal restaurants and Fantastic Chef remains a top contender when it comes to meat flavor and quality.
The meat selection can be overwhelming. As for us, we started with the plain cuts — including plain beef, jowls meat and pork belly. For me these are some of the best from the menu; I particularly like the thick cuts. We then tried some of their flavored meats including the seasoned beef plate and spicy pork bulgogi.
You can eat the meat wrapped in lettuce or dipped in cheese. Their cheese is really good although thin — you really have to soak in the samgyup for it to get coated (I missed the gooey cheese dip in Bawooboy Grill). We kept asking for the cheese refill that the staff eventually gave us 2 saucers instead of 1.
Fantastic Chef also sells soju. This is the perfect drink to go with your samgyupsal. I’m not a fan of plain soju, so I appreciate that they have fruity flavors as well. They also have different kinds of ice cream such as melona, soft-served and Greek yogurt ice cream. The Greek yogurt (blueberry flavor) is my favorite and it’s a must-try! By the way, these are not part of the unli packaged but purchased separately.
Overall, here’s what I like about Fantastic Chef:
- Extensive menu
- Authentic, premium-quality meat
- Affordable for P499 or P549 per person
- Service is prompt, refills are given fast
As said above, Fantastic Chef is one of the best unli samgyupsal restaurants in Manila you can find. If you love samgyupsal, make sure to visit Fantastic Chef at Remedios, Malate!
About Fantastic Chef (Remedios, Malate)
Address: 590 Remedios Circle, Brgy. 702, Zone 077, Malate, Manila
How to get here:
- From Buendia-Taft or Roxas Boulevard, you can walk to Fantastic Chef.
- From Buendia/Gil Puyat, ride a jeepney with Mabini signage and get off at Remedios.
Opening hours: 11AM to 6AM
Rates
Rate is P499 per person for unli Korean BBQ. Add P50 to include the beef plate and seasoned beef plate to your choices.
There is a leftover fee of P200.
Contact
Fantastic Chef Taft often has on-going promos, so make sure to check out their Facebook and IG for updates.
Disclaimer: Thanks to Sir Jun of Fantastic Chef for inviting us! As always, thoughts and opinions are my own.
Have you been to Fantastic Chef? What’s your review? Let us know in the comments below!
What to read next:
Are you a samgyupsal lover? Check out these samgyupsal restaurants we’d been to:
- Samgyupsalamat
- Romantic Baboy
- All4U Unlimited Korean BBQ and Shabu-Shabu
- Fantastic Chef
- Premier The Samgyupsal
- Sibyullee Korean BBQ
- KPub BBQ
- Seoul Galbi: Traditional Samgyupsal
Also check out:
Katherine Cortes is a 30-something freelance writer/editor. She likes beaches, snorkeling trips, and relaxing staycations (preferably with bath tubs!).
